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44 College Scholarships That You Didn't Know Existed

Calling all future artists, musicians, farmers, vegetarians, candy-makers, and leaders of America. Whether you adore zombies, you’re tall, or you like to fly drone helicopters, this is for you.

Here’s a comprehensive list of college scholarships that consider more than just your grades. Three cheers for opportunities to show everyone there’s more to you than your straight A’s! Plus, we’ve arranged them by deadline to make it easier for you to make a plan to fund college.

January

Deadline: January 1Available to: Anyone. There are 4 categories to compete in, ages ranging from under 12 years old to over 25 years old.Details: Earn a $2,000 scholarship for your mad sewing, knitting, and fashion designing skills. Be sure to check with your local level contest before you try to enter this national contest.

Deadline: January 1Available to: High school seniors pursuing a major in Graphic Design or Applied Arts or to current undergraduates in Graphic Design.Details: Win $500 and an opportunity to showcase your artistic talent. All you need to do is design a logo, mission statement, mascot, or anything that promotes your university (or the one you’ll attend in the fall). Write a 200-300 word description of your design and why you created it.

Deadline: January 1Available to: Students between the ages of 13 and 20Details: Write a 700-1500 word essay on the topic of backflow prevention and safe drinking water, and you could earn $1,000 for college.

Deadline: January 1Available to: Students with the last name Gatlin or Gatling, who are attending (or are planning to attend) North Carolina State University.Details: Scholarship award is $9,000 annually in-state, or $18,000 annually out-of-state.

February

Deadline: February 1Available to: Females living on a farm and pursuing a degree in agricultural management or agricultural sales and marketing with at least a 3.0 GPA.Details: Sponsored by the National FFA Organization. Earn a $1,000 scholarship if you’re selected.

Deadline: February 9Available to: Current undergraduates in the United States with an interest in studying less commonly taught languages in countries critical to U.S. national security.Details: Earn up to $20,000 to study abroad. Preference is given to students who want to pursue a career in national security and can make a commitment to work for the federal government for at least a year after graduation.

March

Deadline: March 1Available to: Male members of the Associated Male Choruses of America who are pursuing vocal music studies. (Note you must have an endorsement from your local chapter before applying for this national award.)Details: Men who love to sing, this one’s for you. Earn up to $1,200 for college.

Deadline: March 1Available to: Incoming college freshmen who are tall. Men must be at least 6′ 2″ and women must be at least 5′ 10″.Details: If you’ve been given the gift of height, you could earn $1,000 for college!

Deadline: March 2Available to: Anyone 14 years or older! You must be pursuing a diploma or a degree.Details: Have fun creating an original work of art for a greeting card. Upload your .jpg image and you could earn $10,000.

Deadline: March 11Available to: Full-time undergraduate or graduate students with less than one year of professional photography experience.Details: Attention photographers! Earn $1,500 for college by submitting a body of work that tells a story of promoting world peace and cultural understanding. Does your work have potential to affect global change? Even better.

Deadline: March 25Available to: High school and college students who bowl.Details: If you are serious about bowling, there’s college money around for you! Here are 7 different bowling scholarships based on everything from grades and letters of recommendations to financial need. You can earn between $1,000 and $6,000.

April

Deadline: April 1Available to: College sophomores, juniors, and seniors majoring in food, chemical, or biological science.Details: Earn $5,000 for proving your interest in the field of confectionery technology. Must also have a minimum 3.0 GPA.

Deadline: April 7Available to: High school seniors intending to pursue a degree or trade school education.Details: Fill out the form and potentially win $2,000. No essay required, but to enter to win, you’ll need to take a 5-minute tutorial on fire sprinklers.

Deadline: April 26Available to: High school juniors and seniors.Details: If you like Ayn Rand and know something about Objectivism, earn up to $10,000 for your winning essay on a topic about The Fountainhead.

Deadline: April 30Available to: Students planning to attend or currently attending an accredited college.Details: Win $1,000 for creating an advertisement about distracted driving. Humor is welcome for this award!

Deadline: May 15Available to: High school students and currently enrolled college students.Details: Love to eat healthy? Write an essay about who inspires you to eat a healthy lifestyle, and you could win $1,500.

Deadline: May 15Available to: Graduate-level students of library or information science or museum studies.Details: Explain why you believe moving image archiving is important, and you could earn $4,000.

Deadline: May 31Available to: Graduating high school seniors or college freshmen.Details: Fill out a survey, submit your favorite photo, and tell PicMonkey the story behind your favorite photo to earn $1,000 for college.

June

Deadline: June 1Available to: U.S. students currently enrolled in an accredited secondary school or post-secondary institution.Details: Why is copyright important? Say it in a creative way and you could earn up to $5,000.

Deadline: June 1Available to: Anyone who can provide proof that they’ve applied for multiple college scholarships.Details: This scholarship’s intent is to reward you for your persistence and courage in applying for many scholarships. Debt.com’s mission is to encourage Americans to fight their way to financial independence.

Deadline: June 13Available to: 6th-8th graders and high schoolers.Details: If you want to make the ocean a little bit cleaner, you could win $1,500. Send in your ideas about ending ocean pollution in the form of art, poetry, prose, or film.

Deadline: June 15Available to: High school seniors planning to attend college in the fall or current culinary arts students.
Details: If you’re a gourmet and you’re planning a career in the culinary arts or hospitality, you could earn $500 for college.

Deadline: June 15Available to: Graduate students actively involved in research to help the potato industry.Details: Prize is a $10,000 scholarship. The winner is selected based on various criteria including academic achievement, leadership abilities, potato-related areas of graduate study, benefit to the U.S. potato industry/commercial value, extracurricular activities, and grades.

July

Deadline: July 7Available to: Full time undergraduate and graduate students enrolled at accredited colleges.Details: Award is given by the American Association of Railroad Superintendents. Preference is given to applicants enrolled in the transportation field. You can earn $1,000 if you’re selected.

August

Deadline: August 31Available to: Students 13 years or older.Details: Take a break from your serious academic life and make someone laugh. If you write something that makes these folks laugh, they’ll give you $1,500.

Deadline: August 31Available to: High school seniors or currently enrolled college undergraduates and graduates.Details: $1,000 to the student who can most eloquently explain where the future of event planning is headed.

Deadline: August 31Available to: High school seniors or currently enrolled undergraduates.Details: Do you know the inner workings of a millennial’s brain? Write an essay and share your ideas for how companies can earn millennial loyalty, and win $2,500. You must have a minimum 3.0 GPA.

September

Deadline: September 1Available to: High school sophomores and juniors attending the NRA Youth Summit in Washington, DC.Details: Attend this NRA summit in order to compete for $30,000 in college scholarships. There are two rounds of scholarships given. The award for each round is $15,000.

Deadline: September 2Available to: Current college undergraduates at an accredited institution.Details: Make a YouTube video about why Tungsten rings are the best wedding bands, and you could win $500 annually for college.

Deadline: September 30Available to: Students with a minimum of 2 years experience as a golf caddy.Details: This full-ride scholarship program is for students who have a proven and strong record as a golf caddy. Academics, financial need, and caddy record are all evaluated.

October

Deadline: October 19Available to: Non-NCAA collegiate students ages 18-26.Details: Create a profile on the website and a 1- minute video sharing your idea for changing the world. Winner will receive $100,000 payable for your college tuition or student loans.

November

Deadline: November 5Available to: Current undergraduates.Details: Are digital or print textbooks more environmentally responsible? Write a 400-500 word essay about it, and if your answer is selected, you could win $1,000!

Deadline: November 27Available to: High school seniors.Details: The contest is associated with the World’s Champion Duck Calling Contest. Awards total $4,250 and are given to the student with the highest duck-calling score in three categories. Must provide a high school transcript.

Deadline: November 30Available to: Students who are attending or who will attend an accredited college, university, or trade school.Details: Applicants should fill out the application form and submit a 300-word essay on the following topic: How does writing impact today’s world? The scholarship will be in the amount of $1,000.00 to be paid toward the educational certification/degree program of the winner’s choice.

December

Deadline: December 7Available to: Students in Kindergarten – 12th grade.Details: Create a doodle for Google fitting the year’s theme, and receive up to $30,000 for college. Plus, Google will feature your doodle. Awards are given based on artistic ability, creativity, and whether the theme is represented.

Deadline: December 31Available to: 18-year-old students enrolled at an institution of higher learning.Details: Pitch a business venture idea, and you could win $2,000. You must pitch it two ways: in a Tweet and through a 500-word essay.

Bonus: Regional Scholarships

Are you lucky enough to live in these areas and qualify for these scholarships?

Deadline: November 16Available to: Female pilots living in Idaho, Oregon, or Washington, pursuing a career as a professional pilot.Details: Earn $5,000 through this scholarship program. You must submit an application, letters of recommendation, a 500-word essay and your resume to be considered.

Deadline: January 21Available to: High school students considering a major in theater arts in the SETC region (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, or West Virginia).Details: The award is given based on financial need, interest in theater arts, and letters of recommendation, and academic excellence.